Retired Pope Benedict XVI greets Pope Francis at the conclusion of a consistory at which Pope Francis created 19 new cardinals in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican Feb. 22. (CNS photo/Paul Haring)

March 7, 2014 6:02 PM Vatican City, Mar 7, 2014 / 05:02 pm (CNA/EWTN News).-
In lengthy excerpts of an interview published in an Italian newspaper,
Benedict XVI speaks of his time collaborating with John Paul II,
highlighting the deceased Pope's sanctity and commitment to the truth.

“In the years of collaboration with him it became ever more clear to me
that John Paul II was a saint,” the retired pontiff told Polish
journalist Wlodzimierz Redzioch in a written interview, selections of
which appeared in Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera on March 7.

Published as part of the book “Beside JPII: Friends and Collaborators
Speak,” released by Italian press agency “Italian Edizioni Ares,”
Benedict's written interview was originally requested by Redzioch in
Nov. of 2013, which he agreed to and completed in Jan. of this year.

During the interview, retired pontiff Benedict XVI recalled that he
originally met John Paul II in the conclave where John Paul I was
elected Pope, explaining how they had both read each others' work
previously and had been wanting to meet each other.

Observing
how the then Cardinal Wojtyla had quoted his piece “Introduction to
Christianity” during the Lenten spiritual exercises he preached for Pope Paul
VI in 1976 [published in 1979 as Sign of Contradiction], Benedict noted that “it is as if, interiorly, we both were
expecting to meet each other.”

“Above all, I immediately and
greatly perceived the human fascination that he exuded, and from the way
he prayed I noted how deeply united to God he was.”

Speaking
of his appointment by John Paul II as Prefect for the Congregation for
the Doctrine of the Faith, Benedict recalled how the Blessed allowed him
to continue publishing theological works for his home diocese, and that
he was “always very gracious and accommodating with me.”

Referring to certain doctrinal challenges which the two faced during
their years of working together, Benedict XVI noted that the first
major topic that came up was Liberation Theology.

“Both in
Europe and in North America, it was common opinion that it was a support
to the poor and, therefore, that it was a cause that surely needed to
be approved,” he explained.

However, “it was an error,” stated
the retired pontiff, adding that “Poverty and the poor were, without a
doubt, set at the center of the Liberation Theology, yet in a very
specific perspective...It was said that it was not a question of help or
of reforms, but rather of the great upheaval from which a new world
would spring.”

Observing how “the Christian faith was being
used as a motor for this revolutionary movement, transforming it into a
political force,” Benedict explained that “A falsification of the
Christian faith needed to be opposed precisely for the sake of the poor
and in favor of the service rendered to them.”

Drawing
attention to John Paul II's experience with Marxism in Poland, which
Benedict referred to as “the godmother of liberation theology,” the
retired pontiff emphasized that it was “on the basis of his painful
experience,” that made it “clear to him that it was necessary to fight
that kind of ‘liberation.’”

Turning to his decision to open
JPII's cause for beatification, which advanced the times established by
Canon Law, Benedict noted that he had been convinced of the Blessed's
sanctity for many years due to his “his intense relationship with God,”
and his immersion “with the Lord.”

“From here came his
happiness, in the midst of the great fatigues that he had to sustain,
and the courage with which he carried out his task in a truly difficult
time,” Benedict recalled.

“John Paul II did not ask for
applause, nor did he ever look around concerned about how his decisions
would be received. He acted beginning with his faith and from his
convictions and he was also ready to receive blows.”

“The
courage of the truth is, in my eyes, a criterion of the first order of
sainthood,” the retired Pope emphasized, adding that “only departing
from his relationship with God is it possible to also understand his
tireless pastoral commitment.”

Noting that John Paul II's
commitment was “inexhaustible,” Benedict stated that “He committed
himself with a radicality that cannot be otherwise explained,” and that
was not limited to “the great trips” he took, but also “day after day
beginning with the morning Mass until late into the night.”

Speaking in reference to the fact that the Church has officially
recognized the holiness of “his” Pope John Paul II, as he was one of the
Blessed's closest collaborators, Benedict XVI affirmed that “My memory
of John Paul II is filled with gratitude.”

“I could not and I
should not try to imitate him, but I tried to carry on his legacy and
his job as best I could. And so I am sure that even today his kindness
accompanies me and his blessing protects me.”

Already on store
shelves, the book is a memoir compiled for the occasion of Bl. John Paul
II's canonization, which is slated to take place on April 27, Divine
Mercy Sunday, of this year, and is available only in Italian.

The book includes recollections from over a dozen of the Blessed's other
closest friends and collaborators, including Bl. John Paul II's
secretaries, Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz, Archbishop Emery Kabongo and
Archbishop Mieczyslaw Mokrzycki.

Also featured are interviews
with the former Director of the Press Office of the Holy See Joaquin
Navarro-Valls, the Blessed Pope's life-long friend Wanda Poltawska, and
the postulator of his Cause for Sainthood, Fr. Slawomir Oder, as well as
many others.

Corriere della Sera is the same Italian daily
which recently published an interview with Pope Francis, in which the
pontiff spoke of key topics in the Church, including the upcoming Synod
of Bishops.

This interview has been translated from the original Italian by CNA's Alan Holdren and Estefania Augirre.

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